For most of my adult life I have worked in the finance and electronic trading space. The banking, brokerage and hedge fund industry is reviled by some and misunderstood by many. But it plays a critical (and usually positive) role in the global economy, and potentially offers useful insights for those operating in the digital marketplace.
I plan to share more about my personal portfolio and investment outlook which are, in large part, an outgrowth of my professional experience. But my interest here is to also explore how the finance industry and markets can inform our understanding of other complex systems.
…the finance industry demonstrates how an ecosystem and marketplace (for anything) can and should operate.
Specifically, the history and current state of the finance industry demonstrates how an ecosystem and marketplace (for anything) can and should operate. The banking and securities trading industries certainly have past examples of sketchy and outright criminal activities. And the transparency and best practices applied today by most market participants are informative and potentially applicable for digital marketers and online business owners.
In addition to exploring how the former may inform the latter, I also hope to draw on my product and business development experience in the financial technology arena. There are many ways the software development, deployment and maintenance practices in the banking and trading space can contribute to more effective operations in the online business and marketing world.
Below are some selected articles that touch on these topics. Enjoy!
There is much that digital marketers, product developers and business operators can take from the finance industry and the world of investing. Some of these are general best practices while others are more complex ideas. But all are financial concepts and investing principles that can serve as guidelines for those in online business, marketing and …
What Digital Marketers Can Learn From the Investment Industry Read More »
In hindsight, 2021 was another challenging year on many fronts. It was meant to be resolution and relief from the craziness of 2020. But on the ground it just turned out to be an extension of the same. And markets and macro factors reflected this too, driving alternative assets and secondary markets to all time …
Alternative Investment Update – Year-End 2021: Move Fast and Fractionalize Read More »
The investment landscape in the second half of 2021 delivered a mix of expected moves and some real surprises. My investment update reflects this mix of opportunities and the continued market schizophrenia, ebbing liquidity and intermittent asset price gyrations. The same can be said of the whole global economy, with its sickly internals. Between inflation, …
Year-End 2021 Core Portfolio Investment Update: Slow Moving Market Storm Read More »
We all know the importance of diversification but, with so many investment options and asset types, it’s hard to make good trading and investment decisions on all of them. But we can leverage the expertise of others by “coattail investing” or following and learning from professional investors. It is true that doing your own research …
Coattail Investing: Learning From Professional Investors Read More »
The term “personal rate of return” refers to return on investment, and was first used by traditional financial firms. Even for standard investment products and accounts there is confusion about how to calculate it. But the traditional concept of “personal rate of return” is also incomplete, and should apply to far more than just your …
The year started off positive, at least based on surface factors. Granted, 2020 set the bar low. But anyone looking closely at the markets still sees worrying signs. Even as markets continue to pump, fueled by too much money chasing too few investable opportunities (and ever-more sketchy ones), it was obvious that the party …
Investment Update for First Half 2021: Taking Profits and Playing With Primates Read More »